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2BANGKOK.COM'S
NEWS AND VIEWS
FEBRUARY 2005
(Photo: 2Bangkok.com)
Happy Chinese New Year
- February 9, 2005
Above: Offerings in
front of a residence
Right: Offerings in front of a spirit house in
front of an office building in the downtown business
district. Placing offerings in front of an spirit house
for Chinese New Year demonstrates the Thai penchant
for intermeshing various religious and cultural traditions.
All
about Orz - BoingBoing.net
..."Orz" is a popular symbol, a pictograph,
a fun stuff, a strong meme, a fashion and even a subculture
in Far East Asia since last year... It illustrates a
guy facing left and kneeling on the ground, the "o"
means the head, the "r" means the hands and
the body while the "z" means the legs. People
use this pictograph to show they failed and they are
despair or in a sad mood in the Internet...
In Taiwan, the "orz" subculture is combined
with another "Nice Guys" subculture. "Nice
guys" refers to the boys rejected or denied by
the girls, because girls often deny the boys by saying
politely: "You are a nice guy, you must can find
another girl who loves you and she is better than me.
I am so sorry"... |
(Photo: 2Bangkok.com)
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(Photo: 2Bangkok.com)
Skytrain dragon
- February 10, 1005
DragonAir advertisement on a Skytrain car
Japan
blasts longest land tunnel -
BBC, February 27, 2005
Anti-Tobacco
Treaty's Bite To Be Tested in Thailand -
IPS, February 28, 2005
...They have in mind two initiatives that are set to
shake up the local smoking culture. On Mar. 25, cigarette
packets sold in this country will begin displaying graphic
pictures about the health hazards that come with tobacco
addiction.
...Another change will come into effect on May 31, marked
globally as the world's anti-smoking day. ''Retail shops
and small stores will not be able to publicly display cigarette
packets on their racks,'' said Hatai. ''The cigarettes will
have to be hidden away in drawers or cupboards, away from
sight.''
Cambodia
set to build trans-border industrial zone -
VNA, February 17, 2005
Cambodia will begin construction of Koh Kong trans-border
industrial zone in Cambodia's Ban Cham Yeam, east of Thailand.
The project will include such items as water supplying, telephone
and electric systems and other infrastructure.
Once completed, the project will be the first world-ranked
industrial zone in Cambodia. It is expected to attract enterprises
in the fields of garment and textile production, agricultural
machines, consumer products, glass and motorbike accessories.
The project will also create thousands of jobs for local farmers.
Haze in KL - February
28, 2005
News from our neighbors:
Air
quality remains unhealthy - Sunday Mail, February
27, 2005
Hazy
and Unhealthy - New Straits Times, February 25,
2005
Rain
brings respite to Klang Valley folk - New Straits Times,
February 28, 2005
'Thais
in a flap over public rubbing of breasts' -
Reuters UK, February 25, 2005
[As soon as we heard about this story we knew the foreign
press would have a field day with it...]
A promotion for breast enhancing cream that involved three
models having a 15 minute mammary massage in public has caused
a furore in Thailand, with family groups saying it violates
traditional values and morality.
Despite Bangkok's racy reputation as the "anything goes"
sex capital of southeast Asia, most Thais are uncomfortable
with public nudity and all newspaper pictures of the demonstration
had the breasts blurred out...
Whether it works or not, a headline in the Thai Post tabloid
summed up the controversy best in a society obsessed with
marketing gimmicks: "Big breast bras good for people
with small brains".
Bangkok
Street Dogs - February 26, 2005
Kevin McLaughlin writes: Anyway, I recently started a blog
called Bangkok Street Dogs, and I was wondering if you could
have a look at it and maybe link to it from somewhere on 2bangkok.com.
Basically, while I lived there I took lots of pics of Bangkok
street dogs, and this blog is a way of creating personalities
around them in order to 'humanize' them. I'd appreciate it
if you could have a look.
Cash hand-outs
'only fuel crime, trafficking' - Bangkok
Post, February 26, 2005
Child rights advocates yesterday urged Thais and foreigners
to stop giving money to child beggars, saying their kindness
fed crime and fuelled human trafficking...
The report said many beggars were set up to look as if they
were a mother and baby even though they were not related to
draw sympathy from passers-by.
The report also said foreigners tended to give money to beggars
and their daily average income ranged from 500-1,000 baht,
depending on the location, with most of the money going to
gangsters.
Thailand
to dispatch 177 troops to Burundi on peacekeeping mission
- AP, February 21, 2005
The
amazing world of gantry cranes -
February 22, 2005
Uwe writes: With interest I wrote your web-page, because
I'm working in this field. Right now I have published
a home-page about me and my work and like to asked you
if it is possible to link
to my site.
Alaska
railroad tours - February 23,
2005
This
is an ad served by Google, but it looks very interesting...
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Phi Phi Island: Conflicting
visions for the future of island’s twin bays
- The Nation, February 25, 2005
...On the surface the new
look planned for Phi Phi is an environmentalist’s
delight. It calls for the elimination of all permanent
concrete structures from the space between the famous
twin-bay beach fronts. Thailand’s tropical
paradise icon would be restored to the utmost of
its natural beauty.
...The plans, drawn up by the Bangkok-based Special
Areas Development Organisation, could affect more
than 90 per cent of Phi Phi’s principal businesses,
forcing all development to move to surrounding hillsides.
...Nothing better illustrates the weakening of Islamic
values on Phi Phi than the long-time conflict between
the mosque and a Muslim landowner who rented his
property to Hippies Bar on the beachfront of Tonsai
Bay. The deal allows the bar to operate right next
to the island’s historic Muslim graveyard.
“I’m very angry,” said Konee Kongkhaoreab,
a cousin of the landowner and member of the mosque.
“Our grandparents and great-grandparents are
buried there. How can they rest peacefully with
loud rock music blasting until 4am every day?”...
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(Photo: 2Bangkok.com)
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Above right: 2003 - Some areas
of the peninsula between Ton Sai Bay and Loh Dalam Bay were
developed with almost wall to wall guesthouses and bars.
Most of these structures were destroyed or gutted by the
tsunami.
Phi
Phi Island in 2003
More on the "Warning sign"
- February 25, 2005
Paisa writes: Jao Mae can also mean female protective
spirit, shaman, saint, or deity. Jao Por is the male counterpart.
Many Thai cities (including Bangkok) have san jao por luk
muang (shrine [of the] spirit [protecting the] city pillar).
Here's a picture
of one. Among the well-known Jao Por and Jao Mae in
this sense are, jao
mae guan im -- and jao
por guan yu.
Earlier: Warning sign - February
22, 2005
Nils translates: "It's forbidden to urinate in this
area. There's a san phra phum (spirit house) here, and the
jao mae lives in the back." I am still not entirely
sure what a "jao mae" is, though my girlfriend
said it's something like a (female) owner/boss/influential
person. (Thanks to Robert for some suggestions with
the translation.)
(Photo: Nils) |
Conor Bracken explains: A
Jao Mae is a colloquial term equivalent to “head
honcho” or something like that but only for
females. There is an implication that the person
has power through connections and influence (and
perhaps crime) rather than education and a career
path.
It’s rarely used in written language and here
its effect is more amusing than intimidating...
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Rap
and hip hop to lure young people to Buddhism
- TNA, February 19, 2005
...In part a desperate bid on the part of a government
concerned that the popularity of Valentine's Day has eclipsed
that of festivals like Makabucha – the day celebrating
the Lord Buddha’s birth, enlightenment and death –
the ministry is to organize a concert on 23 February that
will seek to define a new genre of ‘Dhamma Rap’.
Doing away with the often violent and misogynist lyrics
associated with rap, the new genre will focus on compassion,
sharing and the ability to let go of material possessions...
Lak-Ka-Pid-Lak-Ka-Perd
- February 21, 2005
Artist Wit Pimkanchanapong writes: I would like to inform
you about another art exhibition (in Bangkok this time!)
which called Lak-Ka-Pid-Lak-Ka-Perd.
I will also join the exhibition, with the 10 screen BTS
project (but I still don't sure about the subject, whether
BTS or Chao-Praya-Express-Boat line.
Road
carnage in Thailand - February 21,
2005
Chatchawal Phansopa points out: Road
carnage in Thailand - 13 images which some may
find interesting
Almost like being there: Shanghai maglev
- February 19, 2005
Jason writes: Thank you for publishing your excellent site,
which I visit daily. I've searched but I can't find anything
on the site about the Maglev train in Shanghai. In the extremely
remote possibility that you haven't already covered it, I
recommend the following blog as it has some good pictures
of the Maglev in action: Pudong
Airport Maglev in Depth
There was a piece about it on BBC's Newsnight programme last
night as the UK
government is said to be considering a Maglev network here.
Unfortunately, I can't see it happening.
(Photo: 2Bangkok.com)
Bangkok 'tornado'
- February 16, 2005
The swiftly swirling smoke from a fire Tuesday morning had
the appearance of a tornado. The Rama 9 Bridge is on the middle
left.
Oarfish!
- Sydney Morning Herald, February 10, 2005
Just in time for Chinese New Year: a dragon/sea serpent-like
oarfish washed up in Australia. These have sometimes been
found in Thailand. Don't miss the photo!
'Find Local Ski Areas Near Bangkok, Thailand'
- weather.com, February 19, 2005
Something funny from weather.com (above). The answer is
that there aren't any.
'Bangkok-Bangkok'
- February 15, 2005
Artist Wit Pimkanchanapong writes: I've been to Barcelona
for the exhibition Bangkok-Bangkok, which is all about Bangkok
in many aspects you can get more information, interview, images
here.
Wit Pimkanchanapong's ITINC
map was on exhibit. The link to the interview with Wit is
broken. The correct link is here.
Manit Sriwanichpoom was also exhibiting
at the 'Bangkok-Bangkok" show.
Earlier: Another great map idea from Wit: 'Thailand/thailand'
(Photo: 2Bangkok.com)
Things one sees on the expressway
- February 18, 2005
(Photo: 2Bangkok.com)
Malaysia;
a car-driven economy - Malaysia-today,
February 16, 2005
[Wisarut points out this article and writes: If you think
Malaysia has used so many mass transit system, please think
twice because the following article has told the truth which
Malaysian government refuse to tell the world even though
many KL people know this fact.]
...It becomes obvious later that the Malaysian economy
is driven by cars – fuelled by subsidised cheap petrol
and no-deposit 7 to 9-year financing. Car ownership is at
all time high, so great is the nation’s love affair with
car that the other alternative – public transport, is
stifled and fighting for survival. The evidence is all over
the country – Intrakota and Park May, bus companies have
been bleeding losses for a number of years and on the verge
of bankruptcy. A few month ago, a finance company seized Intrakota’s
buses for non-payment of loans.
...Financing car is cheap and does not make sense; you can
buy a small compact hatch for no-deposit and monthly repayment
of RM300 or less stretched over 7 to 9 years, using the car
as collateral. So in a few years time, the value of the car
is worth much less than what you owe the finance company.
If you are smart enough to ditch the car (give it back to
the finance company, after all the ownership paper says it
is still theirs), the finance company would face losses...
Something about urban legends -
February 21, 2005
Nils writes: As you often mention "urban legends"
on 2Bangkok, you might be interested in the following: I
remember a professor from my university who rose to considerable
fame researching, collecting and publishing such kinds of
stories in the 1990s.
You know, the kind where someone says it happened to a friend
of a friend (but no one ever experienced it firsthand).....
of course they are all fictitious. Something like persistent
rumours; or modern fairy tales.
I think in Anglo-Saxon countries talk about this kind of
stories might always have been more widespread, but it was
something new in Germany then. He published a series of
very popular books on this subject: Die
Spinne in der Yucca-Palme - sagenhafte Geschichten von
heute
This one started it all in 1990: "The Spider in the
Yucca Palm - fabulous (or legendary) stories of today".
The title refers to the purported story of people who brought
back a small palm tree for their home from their holiday
trip in a tropical country (or simply bought it in Germany)
and then were shocked to discover a deadly tarantula (or
whatever arachnid) hiding in the plant.
Die
Maus im Jumbo-Jet (The Mouse in the Jumbo Jet)
Die
Ratte am Strohhalm (The Rat on the Drinking Straw)
Das
Huhn mit dem Gipsbein (The Chicken with the Plaster
Cast)
Pinguine
in Rueckenlage (Penguins in Dorsal Position)
His name is Rolf Wilhelm Brednich and he used to be a professor
here: Department
for Cultural Anthropology/European Ethnology at Gottingen
University, where he led the "Seminar on Folk Culture",
but apparently he's gone to teach
in New Zealand now.
TRT and the media notes
- February 17, 2005
Media
in jeopardy with TRT victory - The Nation, February
17, 2005
...Thaksin and his friends in the business community are
widely perceived to be exerting influence on the print media,
either by applying an advertising squeeze on newspapers or
by directly influencing management and editorial decisions
through the board rooms of those newspapers...
More
tricks? Apirak show pushed back - The Nation, February
17, 2005
...Officials at the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration
(BMA) said they had received notice of the schedule change
in the morning from Pacific Co, the operator of the station
under a concession from the Army.
“We wondered why the schedule was shifted by one hour,
so we asked the company for an explanation. But we were simply
told that the Army has approved the change,” a BMA official
said...
Disabled
lawyer to take exams for state attorney -
TNA, February 16, 2005
...Under the current Attorney General Office’s regulations,
handicapped people are barred from taking jobs in the office.
On that basis, Mr. Sirimit was barred from sitting the examination
in 2001...
Burma:
Tourist boycott benefits no one but China
- Bangkok Post, February 16, 2005
The British prime minister's proposal for a tourism boycott
of Burma, raised before Britons and the leaders of the international
community, is an idea which, if implemented, would do more
harm than good to the people of Burma...
Anguished English
- February 16, 2005
Terry King sends in more anguished English from BMA's
ongoing advertising campaign (these from February 11).
Ong-Bak:
The Thai Warrior - Roger Ebert, February
11, 2005
TV
show slammed as sex lure to teens -
The Nation, February 12, 2005
...“Destiny chapter 1” is similar to the US reality
show “The Bachelor”. In this version, the male participant
has blind dates with three women, and he eventually has to
pick one to be his girlfriend. The programme showed participants
touching closely and embracing one another after having only
been on two dates...
“I’m sure the programme gets a good rating. If I
were single, I would probably like it, he said, “but
in fact I have a daughter. I find it unendurable when I imagine
how I would feel if my daughter behaved the same way as the
women on the programme. I suffer.”...
Dengue
fever explodes in Surat Thani - TNA,
February 11, 2005
Dengue fever is making a comeback in Thailand's southern
province of Surat Thani, with 70 cases already reported this
year, the province's chief health official revealed today.
Mr. Phumiwit Khwanmuang warned that unless sufficient control
and prevention measures were put in place, lives could be
lost, as they were when the disease hit the province two years
ago.
The province is now campaigning for all households to destroy
the breeding grounds for the mosquitoes which spread the disease,
while local officials are spraying houses with smoke as a
mosquito repellent.
The
real Thai thing: Tony Jaa - Canoe,
February 11, 2005
Women love him for his wholesome face, humble demeanour
and chiselled, athletic body. Men envy and admire him. Martial
arts fans are agog over his spectacular moves. "I am
so proud," Tony Jaa says quietly through a Thai interpreter
in a Sun Media interview in Los Angeles. He is visiting the
U.S. to launch the North American release of Ong-Bak: The
Thai Warrior, his debut film as a leading man, opening today...
On the forum: More
Ong-Bak links
(Photo: Nils) |
Britain
to sell off its prime acres in Thailand
- Telegraph, February 10, 2005
To be sold: four acres of prime land in central
Bangkok, currently occupied by one war memorial,
some diplomatic buildings, and a historic flag pole.
Estimated value: up to £30 million. Apply:
HM Government, Whitehall...
The war memorial will be moved elsewhere within
the compound, as will the statue of Queen Victoria
which would otherwise find itself facing the back
wall of whatever is built on the land. Efforts will
also be made to preserve a huge steel flagpole,
specially imported from Hong Kong in the 1890s at
a cost of £500 - earning the then vice-consul
a reprimand for unnecessary extravagance...
Two ghost buildings on New Phetburi
- February 11, 2005
Nils writes:
Left: The ghastliest ghost building of
Bangkok. Close to IFCT Tower (now Thai Summit
Tower, in the background). This one is really
"na-glua" (fearsome).
Below: I'd really like
to know what this was going to be! Offices? Condo?
Opposite Best House and Phetchavej Hospital, near
Khlong Tan.
By the way, in German we call this kind of structure
a "Bauruine" (construction ruin), which
sums up the facts pretty well. It seems there is
no comparable word in English that implies "it
was started, but abandoned before it could be finished."
(?)
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Thailand's
marine national parks in Andaman Sea re-opened
- TNA, February 10, 2005
...The parks are all in the country's six tsunami-ravaged
provinces of Ranong, Krabi, Phang Nga, Phuket, Trang
and Satun.
They include Auao Phang-Nga National Park, Khao
Lam Pee-Had Tai Muang National Park, Chao Mai National
Park, Phetra Island National Park, Tarutao National
Park, Taleban National Park, Tharn Bokkharanee National
Park, Lanta National Park, Khao Lak-Lumru National
Park, Samilan Island National Park, and Nopparat
Thara-Phi Phi Island National Park...
On the forum: Switzerland
map site - February
11, 2005
Satellite data of all of Switzerland with road
data superimposed...
Temporary
ban on fishing in the Gulf of Thailand -
TNA, February 10, 2005
The Thai government has imposed a three-month
fishing ban in the Gulf of Thailand, from 15 February-15
May, to help protect breeding mackerels, the Director-General
of the Department of Fisheries, Sidthi Boonyaratpalin,
told TNA on Wednesday...
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(Photo: Nils) |
Something about Boney M -
February 10, 2005
While much of the world has heard of Boney M, they are unknown
in the States and Americans are perplexed when they first
hear their odd songs that are often played in Thailand. Nils
writes: Wasn't Boney M mentioned at the last 2Bangkok meeting?
Well, yesterday I heard "Hooray! Hooray! It's a holi-holiday"
being played in Ploenchit Center...... couldn't believe my
ears. Have a look here.
They were of course utter crap, but once very big in Germany
(and elsewhere) during the disco fever of the late 70s. I
was too young then to catch them in their heyday, but nevertheless
I still remember some of the songs from my childhood in the
early 80s.
* Rasputin - from this album
* Ma Baker
* Rivers of Babylon
* Brown Girl in the Ring
* and of course... Daddy Cool!
Some of it is so bad that in a way, it's good again, and today
they are regarded as cult by some.
The group was originally a creation of infamous German pop
producer Frank Farian, also fondly remembered for the Milli
Vanilli scandal a decade later... The interesting thing
was that 'Bobby', the male lead singer, couldn't sing and
his voice was actually that of Mr. Farian, I think. His job
was only to dance and make antics on stage. Boney
M on Wikipedia
Ameriquest ad |
Krung Thai Bank ad |
Superbowl
ad based on Thai ad - Slate,
February 9, 2005
Thanks to Loren for pointing this out review of a Superbowl
commercial that copies a Thai TV ad: Ameriquest breaks
out its second funny ad of the evening. In the first one,
a guy talking on his cell phone about a negotiation—"You
are being robbed!"—gets mistaken for a crook. In
this second spot, an innocent man looks like a brutal cat-killer—thanks
to some spilled pasta sauce. These ads brought me closer to
the verge of laughter than anything else I saw tonight. (Though
a reader e-mailed me after the game to point out that the
cat ad may be somewhat derivative. Check
out this spot for what appears to be a Thai bank.)
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Sapporo Snow Festival
- February 9, 2005
Nothing to do with Thailand, but interesting...
Sapporo
Snow Festival official site
A
page of webcams in the Sapporo area
More
webcams
Left: Thai-themed snow sculpture from 1999
Chinese New Year
- February 8, 2005
Tomorrow, February 9th is Chinese New Year. Today is
New Year's Eve.
Also: Petrol
stations open round the clock during Lunar New Year
- TNA, February 7, 2005
Reflexology
- February 8, 2005
Another interesting link from artist Wit: A commissioned
work by Honda (for advertorial about New Honda Accord)
Inspired by traditional reflexology (foot massage) diagram,
which is the relation of foot nodes that connect with
different part of body organs. This illustration is
another side of it, a connection that foot have with
different part of car components. |
BMA English-language
ads - February 2, 2005
Terry King writes: The BMA Tourist Authority has run a
series of full-page advertisements in the Bangkok Post over
the last month or so. The adds highlight various tourist spots
around the city. They are all well-illustrated with obvious
attention to the graphic layout. The other thing that they
have in common is the absolutely appalling English.
The first few sentences of one article: "At Charoenkrung
Road between Soi 26 and 28 locates a place all the tourists
who are sure having been around every alley of Bangkok but
never realize that this unseen place still exists. This mention
place is "Rare Stone Museum." This is the fist place
in Thailand where exhibits rear stones by gathering stones
from diverse sources around the world."
The final paragraph reads: "For those who have some spare
times, spending time in the museum where displaying natural
and human products increases knowledge and pleases your life
as well as develops the life quality to urban people. Each
museum comes from taxes you paid, so all Thais and foreigners
who are here please be invited regarding your interest."
My guess is that they are spending millions of baht on this
campaign but nothing on proofreading.
New
map reclassifies capital as quake-prone
- Bangkok Post, February 1, 2005
U-TAPAO:
Speculation rife on new US role -
The Nation, February 1, 2005
70-year-old
map of Shanghai - shanghaidiaries.com,
January 30, 2005
Unfortunately, no large size available online...
Giant
fish save Burma from tsunami - The
Irrawaddy, January 31, 2005
...The three fish—Nga Shwe, Nga Htwe and Nga Mann—stopped
the waves and ordered them to turn back...
The tidal waves asked why. One fish answered: “This
is enough. We have already destroyed the country.”
Sympathizing with the people of Burma, the colossal waves
receded. Burma was saved the tsunami’s full fury.
How
the Philippines fails to sell itself abroad
- Arab News, January 28, 2005
...So what happened? A lack of infrastructure and no
advertising, is the answer in short... (as seen on friskodude)
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